Tickets are now on sale for the three headline events of Cockermouth Live! 2023.
Eight-piece Manchester reggae band Edward II, singer songwriter Boo Hewerdine with Scottish singer songwriter Jill Jackson, and performance poet Rowan McCabe are the headline acts for this year’s Cockermouth Live!, the annual feast of live music and performance in the West Cumbrian town, which is back this year promising to be bigger and even better.
The festival celebrates the wealth of musical and other artistic talent in and around Cockermouth and dates back to 2010 when a midsummer festival was put on as part of the town’s recovery from the devastating floods of November 2009.
The 14th Cockermouth Live! will be held from Friday June 30 until Sunday July 2.
The emphasis has always been on animating the town itself with happenings in pubs, cafes, shops, churches, church halls, Wordsworth House, Kirkgate Arts Centre and Cockermouth Castle – which is not normally open to the public.
A Cockermouth Live! spokesman said: “It’s a festival by and for all ages. The strapline ‘a weekend of music, inspiration and family fun’ captures the spirit but not the diversity of what the festival offers.
“As well as music there’s poetry, theatre, both on and off the streets, and visual art. The participation of the many choirs, ensembles, folk, blues and jazz combos, which thrive in Cockermouth and surrounding areas also have a huge role.
“Normally between 400 and 500 amateur performers contribute to the weekend’s entertainment. Historically the festival has taken place largely on the Saturday.
“This year there will be much more on the Sunday too, allowing the festival to ‘breathe’ a little more and avoid duplication of activity.”
Edward II play on Saturday night. An English roots band, they have been going since the 1990s, blending rhythms of the Caribbean with traditional songs from the British Isles.
International singer songwriter and folk musician Boo Hewerdine will play Friday night accompanied by Scottish singer songwriter Jill Jackson. Over 100 of Boo’s songs have been covered by the likes of KD Lang, Kris Drever, Chris Difford, Heidi Talbot and Hannah Rarity.
Preceding Boo on Friday evening will be Rowan McCabe with his show, Door-to Door Poet. Knocking on strangers’ doors, he writes poems for them, for free, on any subject of their choosing.– a bit like the Avon Lady, but with rhymes.
The festival weekend will be rounded off with a concert by the 50-strong Cockermouth Community Orchestra, conducted by local composer Philip Wood, containing a world premiere of a new piece specially written for Cockermouth LIVE!
Tickets are available from www.kirkgateartsandheritage.org.uk/whats-on/
